‘Baby Einstein’ founder takes university to court, seeking research data


A co-founder of the company that created the “Baby Einstein” videos has asked a judge to order the University of Washington to release records relating to two studies that linked television viewing by young children to attention problems and delayed language development, reports the New York Times. “All we’re asking for is the basis for what the university has represented to be groundbreaking research,” the co-founder, William Clark, said in a statement Jan. 11. “Given that other research studies have not shown the same outcomes, we would like the raw data and analytical methods from the Washington studies so we can audit their methodology, and perhaps duplicate the studies, to see if the outcomes are the same.” Clark said he had been seeking the information for years, but the university had either denied his requests or failed to be fully responsive. A spokesman for the university said its lawyers had not yet read the complaint and could not comment. Baby Einstein, the leading baby-video company, was started in 1996 by Clark and his wife, Julie Aigner-Clark, who said they went to court to protect their legacy. The Walt Disney Co. bought Baby Einstein in 2001, and the Clarks currently have no financial stake in the company. In October, under threat of a class-action lawsuit charging that Baby Einstein had been fraudulently marketed as educational, Disney offered refunds to those who had bought the DVDs…

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